The English opening batter Zak Crawley has indicated he had no knowledge of statements from captain Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered this message in multiple conversations in the wake of England's loss in the second Ashes series against Australia previously.
Ahead of the third Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" within the playing group.
"I have completed the necessary discussions in recent days that I required," remarked the England leader.
But, following Crawley scored a knock of 85 on the fourth day in the third Test, he commented: "I missed those remarks."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the media with a pinch of salt," he added.
Raw Conversations and Consistent Messaging
The captain made the "weak men" observation after his side were beaten in the second Test to go two matches behind.
The team afterwards took a holiday to a Queensland resort between the second and third Tests.
Prior to this match, Stokes revealed his team had held "raw" conversations and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their battle to stay alive in the series.
Yet, Crawley asserted the messaging from the captain and head coach Brendon McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"It's been extremely upbeat, the same as always," noted Crawley. "The focus is just trying to be optimistic, playing our brand, with lots of freedom. It felt like we were capable of an extraordinary feat entering this Test."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
Crawley's wicket on day four came during a decisive triple-strike by Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.
Lyon's triple strike in 20 deliveries – including the wickets of Brook and Ben Stokes – left the chasing side six down for 207 in pursuit of a notional target of 435 runs.
Consequently, Australia require just four more wickets on the last day to move to an insurmountable three-nil lead with three matches played.
Defeat will extend England's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth straight overseas Ashes loss.
The current battle will be completed in just 11 days of play – after England losing the initial matches in two and four days respectively.
The last time 1921, when the Australians completed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been decided more swiftly. Australia have also won in eleven days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"This is disappointing," admitted the batsman. "We came here to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel at this point."
"There remains plenty to play for and we will certainly approach it with that mindset," Crawley added.
"The challenge has been tough. They're a formidable side. It was inevitably tough coming here against them. They were the front-runners coming in to it have demonstrated their quality."
Ollie Pope's Place Under Scrutiny
While Crawley's innings in the third Test likely secures doubts about his immediate future in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under immense pressure for his spot in the Melbourne Test on Boxing Day.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second knock on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across sixteen Ashes knocks, Pope has never made a half-century and boasts an average of 17.62.
A solitary other England player since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played as many times in the top six in the Ashes and returned a poorer average.
But, Crawley said any notion his teammate is under the microscope comes from "you guys" – meaning the journalists – "and not within the team."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "He has had a good year to be frank."
"He has produced several excellent innings. This is noise externally. There is no chat like that regarding Pope amongst the players," he finished.
